To succeed in games which have a puzzle or brain teaser element, you need to be able to think logically and have a huge amount of patience.

However, there are some puzzles and brain teasers which can send even the most patient and practiced puzzler off the deep end, and many of these are found in Nintendo 3DS games. Let’s take a look at 5 of the most maddeningly difficult puzzles Nintendo has served up so far. And who knows what further challenges await us in the new Wii U games that have just made it to the market?

1. The ‘goat puzzle’ in Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars (Director’s Cut)

Ask anyone who has ever played this Broken Sword title about the ‘goat puzzle’ and they will shudder or at least flinch in recollection of its fiendish level of difficulty. It sounds easy enough – you have to trap a goat that’s trying to butt you. However, to get past the animal, you must play the game in a different way than in previous puzzles, and nothing in your inventory can help you.

2. The Beach Bowl Galaxy in Super Mario Galaxy

Once you’ve reached the waterfall planet in this Nintendo Wii game, you’ll soon encounter a world of watery problems. The waterfalls are far too high for Mario to reach, but it may be possible using an Ice Mario powerup located nearby. Sound easy? You’ll actually spend hours figuring Mario games like these out.

3. The Chocolate Code Puzzle in Professor Layton and the Curious Village

In this puzzle, you have a sheet of 30 chocolate squares, and you need to figure out the fewest number of times you’ll need to break the chocolate until all 30 squares are separated. This one is so difficult it will make your head hurt, but what else would you expect from the king of all puzzle games?

4. The Elusive World 4 in New Super Mario Bros

Somewhere within this adventure there is a way to unlock World 4, but it is possible to play the game time and time again without finding it. It’s maddening!

5. The Minecart Ride in Super Paper Mario

In this game, it’s all going swimmingly until Mario hops into a cart and begins to trundle along the track looking for the key. However, the key doesn’t seem to exist, and you’ll need to look at the problem in a whole new way in order to solve it.